The Pokemon Chronicles Volume 2: Clashing Ambitions
by Arsenal123
Summary: We left off when Kyle and his friends, Evelyn and Zach, had reached Castelia City and Kyle and Evelyn tied in the local battle tournament, preparing to fight the Gym Leader, Burgh. Beyond that, their journey through Unova will go on, with Team Plasma interrupting and even their own clashing ambitions. But who will prevail as the strongest Trainer in the region?
1. Chapter 1

**Castelia City Battle Tournament!**

"Castelia City!" I shouted, running with my partner Servine to the crowded city up ahead.

"Oh...yeah!" agreed Zach, following me alongside Evelyn.

"I'm gonna win my next gym badge!" said Evelyn, joy clouding her eyes.

"Me too!" I said.

"That next ribbon is mine!"exclaimed Zach.

* * *

As we walked towards the city, we saw a booth right in front of the Pokemon Center. We rushed there and saw that there was going to be a battle tournament, and the winner would get to battle Castelia City's very own Gym Leader!

"I'm in!" I said.

"Me too!" said Evelyn.

"I'm not going to lose to either of you!" exclaimed Zach.

"Wow," said Barry, signing up for the battle contest. "This should be interesting! The twerps are going to be battling!"

"If they're battling," started Becky, "then so am I! I need to beat them once and for all!"

"Welcome," started the MC, "to Castelia City's annual Battle Tournament. I'm Sydney, and I'll be your host for today's marvelous event! 32 Trainers from our very own Unova region will be battling it out to become the champion of the tournament! Plus, the winner gets a trophy AND gets to battle the Castelia Gym Leader, Burgh, and possibly even get a Gym Badge from him on the spot!"

Suddenly, a stranger walked onto the stage. "That's right! You'll be battling none other than moi, the chic, the fashionable, Burgh, user of the elegant Bug-types!"

So that's the Gym Leader? Well, I was ready for him!

Looking around in the crowd, I saw a familiar face. It was none other than...

"Brian!" shouted Zach, running over to our best friend.

Evelyn and I followed. We all exchanged information about our journey here, the ups and downs, and whatnot.

"So," asked Evelyn. "Where's Professor Juniper?"

"She's back at Nuvema Town," said Brian. "I got a break from being her assistant, so I'm gonna battle here!"

"Nice!" I said. "I'm so glad you're here!"

Then, a familiar voice shouted out to me saying, "KYLE!"

I turned and saw Colin.

"You're battling here too?" I asked.

"Of course," he said. "I'm going to meet YOU in the finals, and this time, I'll win!"

"We'll see!"

Suddenly, Sydney started to talk over the microphone. "Now, folks, here are our matchups:

#1: Andy vs. Evelyn

#2: Tim vs. Jack

#3: Brian vs. Will

#4: Jenna vs. Liam

#5:Zach vs. Jake

#6:Ian vs. Colin

#7: David vs. Barrium (Barry)

#8: Rebecca (Becky) vs. Dante

#9: Kevin vs. Josephina

#10: Caitlyn vs. Missy

#11: Kyle vs. Andre

#12: Jackson vs. Iris

#13:Mara vs. Gary

#14: Kate vs. Miranda

#15: Patrick vs. Asa

#16: Tyler vs. Jacolby

This battle tournament was just about to begin!

* * *

The first round was a breeze. Using Gible, I beat Andre's Patrat. Evelyn and Munna destroyed Andy, Zach and Dewott wrecked Jake, Colin and Watchog wiped out Colin, and Brian and his new Pokemon, Panpour, defeated Will. Two other people, Barrium and Rebecca, showed a lot of spunk.

Then, Sydney came with the matchups for round 2:

#1: Evelyn vs. Jack

#2: Brian vs. Jenna

#3: Colin vs. Gary

#4: Kyle vs. Miranda

#5: Zach vs. Patrick

#6: Barrium vs. Iris

#7: Becky vs. Missy

#8: Tim vs. Jacolby

Evelyn and Sewaddle had the first battle. Using their tactic of blinding their opponent with String Shot, they defeated Jack and his partner.

Next was Brian and Watchog. They had a sly Hypnosis technique and defeated their opponent.

After that, Colin used his Sigilyph and used his special, and annoying if I may say, Psybeam/Air Cutter tactic and obliterated their opponent.

Now was my turn. Miranda decided to start off the battle by using a Pokemon known as a Sandile, so I chose my trusty Gible.

Sandile and Gibel both started the battle off by using clashing Sand Tombs, trapping each other in their own individual sandstorms. Gible decided to use Dragon Rage and totally blow up the tomb surrounding it, and then used Bite attack on the Sandile, who countered by also using a Bite attack. This match seemed to be pretty even!

Then, Sandile used Dig and his underground. This may have seemed bad, but Gible had the uncanny ability to sense underground movement, so predicting when and where Sandile would come out, Gible used Dragon Rage, and it worked!

Sandile was knocked into the air, and Gible used Bite attack and threw it down with its teeth. That match was over; point, moi.

Zach and his Pidove were battling untill all of a sudden, his Pidove evolved into a Tranquill.

"Tranquill, the Wild Pigeon Pokemon, and the evolved form of Pidove. Tranquill can always find its way back home, whether to its nest deep in the forest or to its Trainer's side. It's said that when these Pokemon nest together, peace surrounds the area."

That evolution gave Zach the edge, and he won as well.

* * *

After all the matches were over, Sydney came on stage and said, "These were some amazing matches! Now, its time for the next matchups:

#1: Brian vs. Jacolby

#2: Kyle vs. Colin

#3: Evelyn vs. Barrium

#4: Zach vs. Rebecca

I was battling Colin! I was hoping that my battle with him could've been later, but still...

"It's barely been a week," said Colin, "and now I have the chance to destroy you! This time, you'll be defeated!"

"We'll see..."

* * *

In the battle between Brian and Jacolby, Brian and his Panpour once again beat their opponent, mainly because of the fact the opponent was a Pansear and Fire was weak to Water.

Now, it was between me and Colin. Whoever won would go up against Brian in the semifinals. I've never battled Brian before, so hopefully, it would be me moving on.

I started off with Gible, mainly because Colin wasn't a big fan of it in our last battle.

What do you know, Colin decided to use Sigilyph, the Pokemon that had defeated Gible in our last battle. Colin knew that Sigilyph would intimidate Gible, but what he didn't know was that this time, we were more pumped than the last!

Gible staretd off by using Sand Tomb, but Sigilyph used Air Cutter to obliterate the move. Then, it used Psybeam and blew Gible into the air, then attempting to use Air Cutter.

This seemed familiar, because that was the strategy he used last time against Gible to beat it!

Knowing that, Gible used Bite on the Air Cutter, and it actually caught it! How was beyond me, but as long as it worked, I was fine. Gible tossed the Air Cutter back at Sigilyph as if it were a frisbee, and the surprised Sigilyph had no time to recat. Then, Gible used Bite on its opponent and tossed it to the ground.

Despite that, Sigilyph got up and used Psybeam on Gible, who decided used Dragon Rage to counter it. Last time that happened, Gible lost the duel. This time, however, Gible didn't take as much damage, so it just had to win.

The "duel of the blasts" continued on for a few more seconds, until Gible, with adrenaline surging in its veins, gave one last push and blasted both its Dragon Rage and the Psybeam back at Sigilyph. That battle was over!

"Kyle," said Colin. "I underestimated your Gible once again, and looked what happened to me! I'm sorry that I didn't keep my promise and defeat you, but next time, I will uphold my end of our rivalry!"

"Ok," I said. "I'll be ready!"

* * *

The battle between Evelyn and Barrium was a tough one, but in the end, Evelyn and Monferno defeated Barrium's Magby. Zach and Rebecca had similar results, Zach's Tranquill prevailing over Rebecca's Oddish.

"Now," started Sydney. "Let's see who will be battling in the semifinals:

#1: Brian vs. Kyle

#2: Evelyn vs. Zach

I didn't realize until I saw the matchups that all four of us had made it to the semifinals! This was turning out to be just like our tournament back in Nuvema Town, except Evelyn and I switched opponents.

As I made my way to the battlefield, I looked at Brian, who nodded back at me. This was going to be an all out battle was what was his nod told me. Boy, I hoped he was right!

"Servine," I shouted, "I choose you!"

Servine came out of its PokeBall, pumped for the battle ahead.

"Pignite, help me out!" said Brian.

He sent out a Pokemon I'd never seen before, but I was guessing that it was once his Tepig.

"Pignite, the Fire Pig Pokemon, and the evolved form of Tepig. 'Food is fuel'- for Pignite, that common phrase is a bit more literal. When it eats, its interal fire is stoked, which increases its power and speed."

Pignite did not seem like a pushover at all, but Servine and I just had to push through to make it to the finals, and then... to Burgh!

Pignite started it off with a strong Tackle attack, but Servine dodge it and used Vine Whip and grabbed Pignite.

Just then, Pignite unleashed its burning hot Ember attack and burned Servine's vines. Then, it used Flame Charge on Servine and knocked it back. Servine tried to use Leaf Tornado and blast Pignite away, but Pignite dodged it like it was in slow-motion. Flame Charge didn't just damage Servine, it increased Pignite's speed!

It used Flame Charge on Servine again, damaging it once more and increasing its own speed. Servine was really fast, but after having taken two strong Fire moves and having had an opponent who increased its speed twice, it could in no way match the speed of Pignite.

There had to be a way to defeat Pignite by using its own speed against it, but how?

Then, it clicked. Just when Servine had attempted to use Vine Whip, in a way it dodged it, but Brian told it which moves to use before listening to what moves I would use. He was going too fast for his own good!

Servine used Tackle and aimed straight for Pignite and missed (as intended), but just before Servine attempted to make contact, I called out for a Leaf Tornado, so when Pignite missed and Brian tried to make its Pokemon go faster by using Flame Charge, Brian didn't have time to compute that there was a Leaf Tornado hurdling towards Pignite. And guess what... it hit!

Pignite was blasted into the air, giving Servine enough time to use Vine Whip on Pignite, reel it in to itself, have Servine use Wrap and tie itself on its opponent, and then use Leaf Tornado to blast it! It was perfect!

Pignite was blasted back, but, struggling, still got up, and went in for a Flame Charge. Despite the damage it had taken, it was still fast and still strong! Servine wouldn't make it!

Only a matter of time before it made contact...

A few feet before it reached Servine, Pignite stopped in its tracks and fell face down on the floor. It used all its remaining energy in the Flame Charge and used it all, not even reaching Servine!

I won! I truly won!

* * *

Before we left to watch the next match, Brian and I high-fived each other for the awesome match we had had just now. As he looked at me, I couldn't help but notice sadness in his eyes. I looked to him and said, "You were awesome Brian! Just slow down a bit! Next time we battle, you better take time to think 'cause although I want to win, I WANT you to beat me."

He looked at me, understandingly, and said, "When did you become so wise?"

I laughed and said, "I've always had it in me!"

We both laughed together and headed to watch the match between Zach and Evelyn. Evelyn was using Sewaddle and Zach was using Purrloin. Purrloin was about to leap in for the finish against a worn-out Sewaddle when all of a sudden, a blue light shone around Sewaddle. It was evolving! Out came a rounder, more shielded Pokemon.

"Swadloon, the Leaf-Wrapped Pokemon, and the evolved form of Sewaddle. When many Swadloon live in a forest, the plants grow strong and healthu. These Pokemon eat fallen leaves and give off nutrients that enrich the soil."

Just when Purrloin was about to strike, the newly evolved Swadloon used Razor Leaf and knocked Purrloin back into the air, and then jumped and used Bug Bite, a super-effective move on a Dark type. The match was over, and Evelyn won!

Sydney returned to the stage and announced, "This has been a day full of excitement, joy, struggle, disappointment, etc., but now comes the time we have all been waiting for: the final round of the annual Castelia Battle Tournament. The two tough Trainers competing today are none other than... Kyle and Evelyn!"

* * *

"Axew, I choose you!"

"Gible, come on out!"

The final battle could have ended up being Servine vs. Monferno, but I felt that this time, the battle should be between the two Pokemon who were equally raised and equally strong!

Axew started the battle by using Dual Chop on Gible, but Gible grabbed the Dual Chop with its teeth and threw it into the air, then used Dragon Rage.

The airborne Axew also used Dragon Rage, parrying its opponents moves. The two moves didn't end up damaging anyone because of their equal strength.

Gible then attempted to use Bite, but Axew also used Bite, both of them trying to place their jaws over their opponent and damage them. That didn't seem to work.

Then, Axew and Gible both used Dragon Rage and blasted each other into the air. Were these two twins or what?

Both Pokemon got up, damaged by each others blast. Gible used Sand Tomb on Axew, but Axew sliced it up with Dual Chop. Then, Axew jumped in for a Bite attack, while Gible tried to use Take Down, a newly learned mive, to deflect it, but ended up getting bitten by Axew. The first serious blow had been delivered!

While Gible was down, Axew had the opportunity to defeat Gible once and for all by using an ultra-powered Dragon Rage. It hit Gible directly! Gible was now surrounded by the move!

"Gible, no!" I shouted.

Inside the Dragon Rage, a blue light shone. From that light, a blast deflected the Dragon Rage and hit Axew square on. From the light came a new Pokemon, so that must mean the Gible had evolved!

"Gabite, the Cave Pokemon, and the evolved form of Gible. While digging to expand its nest, Gabite sometimes finds sparkly gems that then become part of its hoard."

"What kind of Dragon type evolves that quickly?" I wondered, knowing Dragon types evolved much later than your typical Pokemon.

Evelyn shouted from across the battlefield, "Gible is the fastest Dragon type to evolve, only at Level 24, while others get to evolve at around Level 35!"

If Gabite was Level 24, then my other Pokemon must have been above that!

Whatever, I thought. That was not important right now. What mattered was that I beat Evelyn!

Gabite used Dragon Rage on Axew, who jumped and used Dragon Rage back, hitting Gabite square on.

Although it had just evolved, Gabite seemed tired from its battle. Axew, on the other hand, had taken only one hit, but it did seem about as tired as Gabite.

It was time for the final moves. Gabite used Take Down, while Axew used Dual Chop. The two made contact, and of course, a cloud of dust just CONVENIENTLY appeared. When the cloud disappeared, both Pokemon stood, panting. Just when I thought I had won...

Both Axew and Gabite fell to the floor. The battle was a draw?!

Sydney, our MC, looked confused. She then went to the microphone and said, "It seems that both Pokemon are unable to battle, so this battle is a draw! I guess you guys both get trophies for winning, but who gets to battle Burgh in a one-on-one? I'm starting to..."

Burgh then appeared on stage and grabbed the microphone. "Easy, my dearest Sydney. I'll just have to battle them both in a double battle!"

Evelyn and I looked to each other. Did we want to do this?

We both nodded, knowing we had the same answer, and said in unison, "Deal!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Battle to the End!**

"Alright then," said Syndey, who apparently would also be the referee of Evelyn and my double battle against the Castelia City gym leader, Burgh.

"This will be a double battle," continued Syndney, "where the challengers and chmapions of the Castelia Battle Tournament, Kyle and Evelyn, choose one Pokemon each to battle against two of Burgh's Pokemon. Burgh, are you ready?"

Burgh nodded.

"Kyle and Evelyn, are you ready?"

I looked to Evelyn, my heart racing. She looked at me back. For a moment, we held our gazes, then nodded.

"Alright then," shouted Sydney, "battle...begin!"

* * *

As the battle started, Brian and Zach went to a snack shop to grab some snacks.

"I hope we won't miss anything," said Zach as he paid for their refreshments.

"Don't worry!" said Brian. "Those two will make sure to have a battle that will hold out long enough that we won't have missed a thing!"

As the two friends turned to go back to the main stage, they noticed a familiar duo of fiends sneaking around on the side.

"Is that..." Brian started.

"Team Plasma!" shouted Zach.

The evil duo looked at each other, smirked, and ran through the many vendor stalls and hurried deep into the crowded city.

Zach and Brian looked to each other and nodded.

"Let's go!"

* * *

"Herdier, I choose you!"

"Munna, let's go!"

As we sent out our Pokemon, I couldn't help but wonder why Evelyn had chosen Munna tto battle. Sure, it was a strong Pokemon, but wouldn't Monferno have been a better option, since Fire types were strong against Bug types? Plus, Psychic types were weak to Bug types, so what could she have been planning?

"Leavanny, Whirlipede, let's roll!" shouted Burgh with exaggeration.

Out came two Bug pokemon I had never seen before, and the baffled expression on Evelyn's face told me they were new to her as well.

"Leavanny, the Nurturing Pokemon, and the evolved form of Swadloon. Leavanny loves to make clothes for smaller Pokemon, cutting up leaves with its arms and sewing then together with sticky silk from its mouth."

"Whirlipede, the Curlipede Pokemon, and the evolved form of Venipede. Covered in a sturdy shell, Whirlipede doesn't move much unless it's attacked. Then it leaps into action, spinning at high velocity and smashing into the attacker."

These two sure seemed like a tough duo! I was just hoping we'd do well and beat them!

Munna made the first move and used Psywave on Whirlipede, which it would've hit if not for Leavanny jumping in front and using Protect.

Aggrivated, Whirlipede jumped and spun in the air, then came down on Munna with incredible speed with a really powerful Steam Roller. Munna definitely took some damage!

With the Whirlipede very close to it, Herdier leaped and used Crunch to damage it, butright before making contact, Leavanny used String Shot and tied Herdier up, not allowing it to carry out its attacks. Whirlipede then used Poison Tail and slammed Herdier into the air, damaging it also.

With both our Pokemon hurt, Leavanny used Razor Leaf and damaged our Pokemon even more! Our Pokemon weren't in good condition all because of that Leavanny stopping them from attacking! How were we going to win?

* * *

As Brian and Zach sprinted through the crowd, they finally saw Team Plasma, panting for air and exhausted.

"There you are, you punks!" shouted Zach. "What are you doing, trying to ruin the tournament?"

"Not quite," said Becky. "All we wanted... was YOU TWO!"

Suddenly, a circle of Team Plasma members closed in on Zach and Brian.

"You led us into a trap!" shouted Brian.

"Oh, we didn't notice!" snapped Barry with a hinto of sarcasm. "Now, hand over your Pokemon or else."

"Never!" shouted Zach.

"Fine," said Becky. "We'll take them ourselves. Then... we'll get rid of you!"

"Yeah right," said Brian. "Pignite, Watchog, I choose you!"

"I'll help too!" said Zach. "Dewott, Tranquill, let's go!"

"Oh, yeah?" said Becky, exasperated, "Pichu, Oddish, let's go!"

"Right!" exclaimed Barry. "Magby, Venipede, come on!"

"This'll be easy," said Zach with confidence.

"I'm glad you said that!" shouted Barry. "Energy release, activate!"

Suddenly, a burst of energy appeared from devices that the surrounding Team Plasma members held, and they moved to Becky and Barry's Pokemon. They were surrounded with blue light, and when the light diappeared, new Pokemon stood in the places of the old Pokemon.

"Gloom, the Weed Pokemon, and the evolved form of Oddish. Gloom doesn't always smell terrible- when it feels safe and relaxed, its aroma fades. However, its nectar usually carries an awful stench."

"Magmar, the Spitfire Pokemon, and the evolved form of Magby. When Magmar releases bursts of flames during a battle, any nearby plant life is in danger of catching fire."

"Pikachu, the Electric Mouse Pokemon, and the evolved form of Pichu. The red pouches on Pikachu's cheeks store up electricity while it sleeps. It often delivers a zap when encountering something unfamiliar."

"And that's a Whirlipede," gasped Zach.

"WHA..." started a befuddled Brian.

"The energy release gave our Pokemon the strength to finally evolve!" cackled Becky. "Try to beat us now!"

* * *

"Wait a second," gasped Evelyn as we continued our battle. "The reason we can't attack Whirlipede is because Leavanny is defending it!"

"Then let's get rid of it!" I agreed.

Munna used Psywave on Leavanny. but it jumped high into the air. Calculating its position, Herdier also leaped and used Take Down on Leavanny, scoring a direct hit and knocking it down!

And that gave Munna the chance to put Leavanny to sleep with Hypnosis. It worked!

Munna moved in closer to use Psybeam on Leavanny, but seconds before it did, Leavanny woke up and attacked Munna to use Bug Bite. Both moves seemed to make contact, but it looked like...

"Leavanny is unable to battle!" shouted Sydney. "Munna is the winner!"

"Awesome, Munna!" I shouted to the Pokemon.

"Mu, mu!" it responded.

"Herdier, you were awesome!" said Evelyn to my Pokemon.

"Dier, Herdier!" barked back the Pokemon.

"I must admit," said Burgh, "your Pokemon have a lot of power! They are strong and fast, and probably also very good partners!"

Now, it was a two on one battle, and we had the advantage. But then again, the defensive one was Leavanny, and now we were up against a strong offense.

Whirlipede rolled in on Herdier and used Steam Roller, and the attack hit straight on! But while that was happeninig, Munna shot a Psybeam and hit the Pokemon with strong contact!

Herdier managed to get up from the attack and used Bite, and Munna leaped in to use Psywave. But Whirlipede got up and used Poison Tail to knock both our Pokemon away!

Our Pokemon were very tired, and at this point, they needed to fnish off Whirlipede to win the battle.

Whirlipede used Poison Sting on Munna, who dodged swiftly, and that was when I realized something: Whirlipede was mainly using its tail to give its strongest Poison attacks! So if the tail was occupied, then we could beat Burgh!

I told Evelyn to have Munna distract Whirlipede in the front with Psybeam, which Whirlipede blocked with its tail. That was when Herdier leaped from behind and used Bite on the tail! This was perfect!

Now that Whirlipede had problems using its tail with Herdier clinging onto it, Munna took the opportunity and used Psybeam to attack the Pokemon, and it worked!

"Whirlipede is unable to battle, so the winners are Herdier and Munna, which means that the victory goes to the challengers, Kyle and Evelyn!"

"Yes!" I said, high-fiving Evelyn.

I ran to Herdier, who jumped onto me and started to lick my face. Munna was nudging Evelyn, who laughed.

Burgh approached us and said,"You two were smart to find out my Whirlipede's weakness and use it agsinst it! I am proud to declare that you two successfully defeated me, so I would like to hand you these!"

He handed us both the Insect Badge.

"Thanks!" Evelyn and I said in unison.

While we were chatting, a man ran to Burgh and said, "Sir! Team Plasma is attacking Trainers here in Castelia City! There are a lot of them, and we can use your help!"

Burgh nodded and said, "Right. Kyle, Evelyn, would you mid coming with me?"

We nodded and sprinted to the location with Burgh.

* * *

Brian, Zach, and their Pokemon were getting all beaten up by Team Plasma and their Pokemon, until Burgh and Leavanny tied the circle up, only to reveal that there were still two members who were attacking our friends!

"Team Plasma!" Evelyn shouted, calling out all her Pokemon to battle them.

"Let them go!" I exclaimed as I sent out all my Pokemon as well.

Barry rolled his eyes and said,"Fight us!"

As Burgh took care of the others, we unleashed all our Pokemon's moves on them.

"Servine, Leaf Tornado!"

"Monferno, Flame Wheel!"

"Herdier, Take Down!"

"Munna, Psybeam!"

"Gabite, Dragon Rage!"

"Axew, Dual Chop!"

"And Sewaddle, Razor Leaf!"

All our Pokemon unleashed their strongest moves and hurdled them towards Becky, Barry, and their Pokemon, who were blasted into the air and hurdled out of sight.

* * *

After having been thanked by Burgh, we patched Brian, Zach, and their Pokemon up, and Evelyn and I discussed our next path.

"I was thinking we go to Nimbassa City!" I said.

"Hmm..." said Evelyn. "Never heard of it!"

"Never heard of it?!" I exclaimed. "It's one of the most famous cities in Unova!"

"That's right!" agreed Zach. "Plus, my next Musical will be there!"

"Then that's settled!" said Evelyn.

Then, I asked Brian, "Where are you headed next, Brian?"

He looked to me and said, "Professor Juniper and I have to go back to Nacrene City to research the fossils there."

"Cool!" I said.

* * *

As we bid Brian farewell, Zach, Evelyn, and I made our way to the gateway that would lead to Nimbassa City. The future looked bright, and hopefully, our path to success would get easier from here. But of course, we could only dream!


	3. Chapter 3

**Secrets of the Tomb! (Part 1)**

"Evelyn," said Zach as we started through the desert that would eventually lead us to Nimbassa City, "you and I should have a rematch battle. You know, after the Battle Tournament and all?"

Evelyn snickered and said, "Has MY awesome victory been hanging in your mind this whole time?"

Zach groaned and said, "I'm coming with you two so I can become a stronger Trainer! That's what a battle helps with, right?"

Evelyn shrugged and responded, "Well, all right. But my condition is this: Monferno vs. Dewott. Do we have a deal?"

"Deal," exclaimed Zach.

"Cool!" I said. "I'll referee! Let's start!"

As they positioned themselves into their proper locations, they called out their Monferno and Dewott, both their starter Pokemon.

"Begin!" I shouted.

Monferno started the battle by using Mach Punch, which allowed it to move at a practically super speed, but Dewott was ready and countered it with Aqua Jet. Then, after making contact, it used Water Gun and blew Monferno back.

This may have seen like not that much for us, but Monferno had taken more damage than it was letting on. With rage, it used Flame Wheel and caught Dewott off guard, then using Mach Punch to damage it even more!

Dewott spun through the air and accelerated towards Monferno with Aqua Jet, but just before it intercepted, a Shadow Ball hit it from nowhere! Dewott flew backwards and made a crash-landing, and then again, another Shadow Ball hit Monferno.

"What was that?!" shouted Evelyn, running to Monferno.

"Dewott!" yelled Zach, helping his Pokemon. "Are you ok?"

"Dew, Dew!" it grunted, pointing towards the sandstorm ahead of us. There, I could barely see the outline of a Pokemon, but just a few seconds later, it disappeared.

"What was that about?" asked Evelyn as she healed her Pokemon.

"I don't know," I exclaimed, "But I wanna find out!"

* * *

We trekked through the desert, searching for a sign of the Pokemon. After hours of nothing, we stumbled across a large beam of clay, kind of like the support of a building.

"Hey," started Zach. "That looks like it came from some sort of tower!"

"You're right!" agreed Evelyn.

We walked past it and noticed a bunch more of those columns.

"What is all this?" I gasped.

We continued until a tower loomed over us. Then, I realized where we were.

"We're at Relic Castle!" I blurted.

Evelyn looked at me, confused. "What is that?"

Zach, also remembering our location, started, "Relic Castle is an old ruin in the middle of the desert that is said to have a sort of ancient Pokemon buried within."

"So, do you think that Pokemon that shot the Shadow Balls at your Pokemon had something to do with this place?" I questioned.

"I bet!" exclaimed Zach. Then, he gasped. "Speaking of which, I think I see that Pokemon... right in front of us!"

Out of the dust floated a ghoulish Pokemon, who was attatched to some sort of mask.

"Yamask, the Spirit Pokemon. The mask that Yamask carries is said to represent its face from a former life. Sometimes, remembering that former life makes it very sad."

"Hey you!" Evelyn shouted. "Why did you blast my Pokemon?! You're gonna.."

"Wait!" exclaimed Zach, running to the Pokemon. "It must have had a reason for doing that! Isn't that right, Yamask?"

The Pokemon turned to him and nodded. "Ya, ya. mask!"

"All right then," I grunted. "So why did you do that? Did you wanna get us here?"

The Pokemon nodded.

"Wait," realized Evelyn. "So you brought us here because there's something wrong here?"

"Mask, Yamask!"

"Is it about the ancient Pokemon in the tomb?" asked Zach.

"Ya,Ya!" it said, nodding.

"Then what are we waiting for!" I shouted. "Let's save that Pokemon before any serious harm comes to it!"

* * *

Yamask lead the way through the maze-like ruins. We went deeper and deeper. Sand got into our eyes and mouths from the floors above and blinded us, but Yamask led the way with confidence. Finally, we got to a clearing in the tomb, and ahead of us was...

"A sand pit?" I wondered. "Why would you bring us to a sandpit?"

Yamask ignored my question and hovered over the sinking sand, beckoning for us to come.

"No way!" snapped Zach. "I'm not gonna die in there!"

Yamask rolled its eyes and floated to Zach. Then, it quickly grabbed Dewott's PokeBall from his belt and threw it into the pit.

"NO!" Zach shouted, making a run for the ball before it fell.

But he was too late. The ball sunk into the pit and disappeared.

"Dewott!" Zach shouted as he leaped into the pit to retrieve his Pokemon.

"Zach, wait!" Evelyn and I shouted, running after him and straight down into the quicksand.

"AHHH!" I shouted as I sunk through the floor and fell straight down. Evelyn was right next to me, screaming as well. Zach was nowhere to be found.

A few seconds later, we fell onto a floor. I stood up, shaking myself off, and looked around.

"Whoa!" I gasped. "This is awesome!"

We were in what seemed to be a hidden tomb, and it was an awesome sight, with ancient carvings on the wall.

I helped Evelyn get up, and we called out Monferno and Servine to help use search for Zach and the caniving Yamask.

We walked through a hallway until finally, we saw Zach, Dewott, and Yamask leaned over someone. He was hurt, bleeding, bruised. But most importantly, he was...

"Philip!" I yelled with anger, running to the member of Team Plasma. We had him cornered, and I wasn't going to let him get away after what he did in Pinwheel Forest!

"Wait," said Zach. "Let him speak for himself."

Philip leaned up from his position and wheezed, "The kid's right. I don't wanna pick a fight, so let me be blunt."

"Well then," groaned Evelyn, "what happened to you?"

"Well," started Philip, "the thing is..."

* * *

"I was here because of a rumor of ancient treasure, so the boss had sent me and a couple other members to find it. We managed to get here, and we saw a Yamask by the entrance. It led us down to a sandpit, and we fell ight through! From there, we came to the main tomb and started to make our way to find the treasure. It wasn't long until we found the treasure area, but the treasure wasn't what you would normally expect it to be...

It was a Pokemon. A supposedly ultra-rare Pokemon, almost valuing to a Mythical Pokemon! I didn't think we should take it. I may have done some bad things, but kidnapping Pokemon was against the Team Plasma rules! Or so I thought, because apparently, every member apart from me was assigned to steal Pokemon!

The other members ran to capture the Pokemon, but the Pokemon was scared and tried to fight back! But they sent out their Pokemon and defeated it, and then started to torture it. It was terrible!

I ran to them to make them stop, until out of nowhere, a Trainer came. I couldn't get his name, but I knew I had seen him somewhere! He was really strong, mentally and physically! He came in there to stop the torture of the Pokemon, and he did! He used this snake Pokemon and defeated the other members' Pokemon with one hit each! The thing is, he never muttered a command to his Pokemon, but the both of them were exactly in sync! They were beat and they fled! I went to thank the mysterious man for stopping the torture of the Pokemon, but he said, 'You are no different from them, not using force to stop this!" and beat me and my Sandile, too! Next thing I know, these three are leaning over me.

* * *

"The reason I am telling you this," finished Philip, "is because I quit from Team Plasma."

"Good for you!" Evelyn cheered.

"Well, then," I said, "before we get all weepy, we gotta see this Trainer and learn why he is here!"

"Ok!" said Philip, finally standing up. "Sandile, let's go!"

He called out his Pokemon, who continued with us as we searched for the mystery Trainer.

Who was this Trainer? How did he communicate with his Pokemon without uttering a single word? Most importantly, what was going on...


	4. Chapter 4

**Secrets of the Tomb! (Part 2)**

"We're almost there," huffed Philip as we continued through the maze-like tomb of Relic Castle.

"When we get there," I wondered,"how do you think we'll face the mystery Trainer?"

"Well," said Zach. "We all gang up on him! I mean, he is a pretty bad guy, it seems, so why not use all our power to take him out?"

"Good idea!" Evelyn said.

"Alright," I shouted, "Servine, Herdier, Gabite, come on out!"

"Monferno, Munna, Swadloon, Axew, let's roll!"

"Dewott, Tranquill, Purrloin, let's go!"

"Sandile, help!"

We all called our Pokemon partners out and continued to trek through the mazelike tomb. Evelyn and Philip took the front, while Zach, Yamask, and I guarded our rear.

The scorching hot sand burned our feet, but we still went on for what seemed like centuries of walking. Then, we reached a vast room, bigger than any of them we'd ever seen before. We walked inside and noticed someone leaning over.

"You!" shouted Philip. "You're the one who..."

"Now, now," said the mysterious Trainer. "No need to get angry. I just did what I had to to keep you from ruining my plans, Team Plasma!"

"Well," I shouted with anger, "Get some new plans, 'cause we are not going to let you hurt the ancient Pokemon here!"

The Trainer looked at me with a glance that said he knew me, but then looked away and said, "I like you a lot, kid. You got a lot of spunk. But there is no way you or your puny friends are going to stop me!"

Yamask then went to the front of the crowd and shot a Shadow Ball at the Trainer. Right before it hit him, a snake-like Pokemon twisted itself around the ball and somehow evaporated it.

"WHAA?" I gasped.

I pulled out my PokeDex to see what kind of Pokemon this was, but the screen was full of static.

"That isn't going to work down here," said the Trainer. "I am not going to let you learn about my Pokemon and give myself a disadvantage! I set up a device so your precious PokeDexes won't work!:

"Why wouldn't you want our PokeDexes to work?" asked Evelyn.

"And how did you know we would come here with them?" asked Zach.

"No matter," he said. "Now, You guys are getting on my nerves!"

All of a sudden, his Pokemon leaped at us with incredible strength and used Leaf Storm to blow us all back!

I was knocked against the wall, Servine next to me. I got up and told my partner, "Servine, let's beat this creep!"

"Ser, ser," it agreed.

We approached the mysterious Trainer again.

"You come back for more!" he sneered.

"I'm just here to make sure you stop!" I snapped.

Servine and the other Pokemon charged at each other. Servine tried to use Leaf Tornado to blow the other Pokemon back, but it simply deflected it and hit Servine with a powerful Leaf Blade. Then, it used Wrap and started to suffocate Servine.

"SERVINE!" I shouted, running towards my Pokemon.

The other Pokemon gave me a Glare and paralyzed me, freezing me in place. It continued to strangle Servine, who was being choked...

Then, Servine eminated a green light. It glowed completely. At first, I thought that it was its ability Overgrow, but this light was brighter. It kept glowing and the whole room turned green!

Then, the light stopped. Servine was free from the entanglement the other Pokemon had caused, but now, it was different. Instead of the red eyes it normally had, it had the brown eyes I did. Its skin was now a light blue, like my jacket. Servine... was merged with me!

Servine looked at me, and suddenly, I understood what it was saying! 'Kyle, we could do this!'

I didn't understand how this was possible, and apparently, neither did the Trainer. "How could this be?" he gasped. "You haven't..."

Before he could finish, I told Servine to use Leaf Tornado on its opponents. But the thing is, I didn't even utter a word!

"This wasn't how it was supposed to be!" shouted the mystery Trainer. "You weren't supposed to achieve that kind of power yet! Not until..."

Suddenly, a flame surrounded him.

"YAAAAAGH!" he shouted.

Despite him being some sort of menace, I ran to his side. "What happened?" I questioned.

"The... Pokemon...of...the...tomb," he gasped.

Then, he pulled out a PokeBall and called out a Pokemon, then he shouted to us, "Until next time!"

Then, he disappeared.

* * *

As we recovered, Zach said, "Ok, that was weird."

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Weird was an understatement."

Then, she turned to Philip, who was crying. "Philip, what happened?"

The ex Team Plasma member stood up and showed us. He held his Sandile in his hand, and it wouldn't wake up.

I grabbed a SuperPotion from my bag and sprayed it on the Pokemon. Then, it struggled to wake up.

"Sandile!" Philip shouted, relieved. "You're awake!"

The Pokemon yawned. We all laughed.

Then, Zach turned to me and asked, "Do you know what happened with Servine during that battle?"

I shook my head.

"And what did that Trainer mean when he said you weren't supposed to be able to reach that power yet? How did he know anything about you or Servine?"

I turned to Servine, who shook its head.

"Well," I said, "we'll find out soon. For now, let's go find that Pokemon!"

As we got up, Yamask went to Zach and held a PokeBall in its hand and shrugged it towards him. Zach gasped.

"Yamask, do you wanna come with me on my journey?"

The Pokemon squealed and nodded. "Yamask!"

Zach took the PokeBall from its hand and tapped it to Yamask's forehead. The Pokemon went into the PokeBall.

"All right!" Zach shouted. "Yamask, come on out!"

Yamask came out of its PokeBall as Zach's partner. "Ya, ya!"

Evelyn helped all the Pokemon get up and said, "All right, let's go!"

* * *

We continued on to where we saw the flames hit the mystery Trainer, and we saw a Pokemon weakly lying on the floor. I headed towards it and helped it up. "Hey! You all right, little guy?"

The Pokemon looked at Philip and blasted me with a Flamethrower. He screeched in pain.

"What did you do that for?!" Philip asked. "I tried to save you!"

The Pokemon giggled. "Vol, Volcarona!"

Zach looked at me and said, "That's the ancient Pokemon! Volcarona!"

I looked to the Pokemon, and it looked to me.

Then, a sudden earthquake caused parts of the ceiling to fall to the floor. I stood up and said, "Everyone, return to your PokeBalls. NOW!"

All our Pokemon, except for Philip's Sandile and the wild Volcorona, returned to their PokeBalls. Evelyn turned to Philip and asked, "Why aren't you sending Sandile back into its PokeBall? It could get hurt!"

Philip responded, "If it ever comes to it, Sandile can dig us a way out of here!"

"Right!" I said. Then, I turned to Volcarona and said, "Volcarona, this place looks like its gonna collapse. Your best bet is to hop into my backpack and come with us for now!"

The Pokemon looked at me, then looked back at its home. Then it nodded and jumped into my bag.

We started to run back to the entrance of the tomb, the ceiling crashing behind us as we fled. We got back to where Yamask had dropped us into the sandpits, but we could get back up!

The shards of the floor above us were getting dangerously closer.

Philip turned to Sandile and said, "Sandile, we need your help!"

Then, a chunk of clay as big as a desk came straight for Philip, but Sandile jumped up and caught it with its mouth. Then, it started to emenate a blue light.

"Sandile!" Philip gasped.

From where Sandile was came a new Pokemon, taller and stronger than its pre-evolved form.

"That's a Krokorok!" Philip exclaimed.

Krokorok landed on the ground in front of us and grabbed all four of us and jumped right into the sandpit above us.

"GAGGHH!" I shouted as my sand got into my eyes, ears, mouth, etc.

Krokorok pulled us out of the pit.

"Thanks!" Evelyn shouted to the Pokemon.

"Krokorok," the Pokemon responded, pointing at the floor behind the pits. Chunks of the floor fell onto the level below us.

"First, the ceiling falls atop us, and now, the floor falls below us!" Zach shouted. "RUN!"

Making sure Volcarona was safe in my backpack, I sprinted through the Relic Castle and headed for the exit. Five feet away from the door, two familiar faces blocked me.

"Not you two!" I shouted.

In front of me stood Becky and Barry. "Don't you fret!" Barry shouted. "We're here to take back the merchandise and our partner. Isn't that right, Philip?"

Philip looked to the evil duo, and smiled evilly. "That's right!" he shouted.

"WHAAAA?!" Evelyn shouted. "You traitor!"

Philip looked to her and said, "Once a Team Plasma member, always a Team Plasma member!"

Then, he looked to me and said, "Now, hand over that Pokemon!"

"Never!" I spat in his face.

Then, he flashed me a look, one that said he had a plan, and turned to Becky and said, "Take it from him!"

"With pleasure!" she shouted. As she walked towards me, a hole burst from under her. Krokorok grabbed her by the feet and threw her into the sands outside.

"My, my!" Barry said. "If you are going to double-cross us, then I'll just have to end you! Whirlipede, come on out and use Poison Tail"

Whirlipede leaped towards Philip and was about to strike him, until Volcarona leaped up and used Flamethrower on it. Whirlipede was blasted back and hit Barry into the desert. The evil duo stood up and glared. "This is not over!"

Then, a helicopter came and dropped down ladders for them to climb onto. I ran to stop them but was too late. They were already in the air.

* * *

As we walked away from the destroyed ruins, we bid Volcarona farewell. But it didn't want to leave. Instead, it turned to me and nodded, as if it wanted to come with me.

I held out a PokeBall and it went inside.

"Yes!" I shouted. "I caught Volcarona!"

Then, I turned to Philip and said, "Thanks for everything! You proved that you aren't a bad guy afterall! I would be proud to call you a friend."

Philip smiled at me and said, "Thanks! And might I add... I feel the same about all three of you! Plus, I'm glad I got to get a new start at my journey!"

Evelyn then asked, "Speking about journies, where are you headed next?"

Philip thought for a second and said, "Well, I was thinking about going with you guys to Nimbassa City and challenging the gym leader. Then, I'm going to fly back to Nuvema, get a Pokemon from the professor along with a PokeDex, challenge the Striaton, Nacerene, and Castelia Gyms, catching some new Pokemon, and then meet up with you guys once again!"

I looked to him and said, "That sounds great! After you, me, and Evelyn have our battles against the Nimbassa gym leader, we'll discuss our plans to meet up with you after you catch up with us!"

"Well then," Evelyn said. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"


	5. Chapter 5

**The SHOCKING Nimbassa City (Part 1)**

"Nimbassa City!" Philip shouted. "We're here at last!"

As we walked through the city, looking at all the different buildings and attractions, we stopped in front of a Pokemon Center, where we ate some delicious food,talked, and healed our Pokemon. Finally, we got up and headed for the Pokemon Gym.

"Alright," I said. "How are we going to do this?"

"Well," Zach said. "You DO remember that the Pokemon Musical Festival is today, right?"

We all stood speechless, probably because we had all forgotten about the Musical Festival.

"If that's the case," Evelyn said, "I'll come and watch you perform, while Kyle and Philip battle at the gym. Does that sound fair?"

We all nodded.

* * *

"Alright then," said the referee. "This match between the Gym Leader, Elesa, and the challenger, Philip, will be a one-on-one battle, due to the lack of variety of the challenger's Pokmeon. The battle starts...now!"

Although this wasn't my battle happening now, I was really pumped. I was going to battle ELESA, practically the QUEEN of Unova! She was really famous for her fashion and Pokemon! How was I going to do against her?

Philip sent out Krokorok, and Elesa sent out a zebra Pokemon.

"Zebstrika, the Thunderbolt Pokemon. A herd of Zebstrika running at top speed gives off noise like thunder. If they get angry, their manes shoot off lightning."

The battle was on. Zebstrika started off with Flame Charge, running at incredible, and increasing, speed. It hit Krokorok head on, blowing it back! Zebstrika continued once more, using another Flame Charge to hit Krokorok.

Krokorok got up and dodged the move. Then, while in midair, it used Sandstorm to cause loads of sand to be blown around the arena, blinding Zebstrika and also damaging it. Then, Krokorok used Dig and hid underground.

Zebstrika, confused about its opponent's whereabouts, struggled to open its eyes and used Thunderbolt in the ground. Then, the Sandstorm disappeared!

But that gave Krokorok enough time to leap up from under Zebstrika, knock it into the air, use Crunch on it, and hurdle it back onto the ground.

Zebstrika still got up after that series of attacks and used Flame Charge on Krokorok. It hit head on!

Now, both Pokemon looked exhausted. If Philip wanted to win, he had to finishthis battle fast!

Krokorok used Sandstorm on the arena, and a whirling storm hit again! This time, however, Zebstrika was prepared and used Thunderbolt on the ground. But to its surprise, when the dust cleared, Krokorok was nowhere to be found.

Krokorok, who was hidden right behind Elesa's Pokemon, used Crunch and blasted it into the air. Then, to knock it down, it used Mud Shot.

"Zebstrika is unable to battle, which means the victory goes to Philip, the challenger!"

Philip ran to the battle field and hugged his precious Pokemon.

Elesa, after returning her Pokemon to its PokeBall, walked to Philip and said, "That was an incredible match, Philip!"

"Thanks, Elesa!" he shouted.

Then, Elesa turned to me. "Now, I hope you share the same spunk as this young man does!"

I turned to her and said, "Yeah, I do!"

"Then let's get this started!"

* * *

"JAMES?!" shouted Evelyn as she saw her old friend from her advemture back at the Pokmeon Day Care.

"Hey, Evelyn!" he shouted, approaching her.

"Who's this?" Zach asked while shaking this new Trainer's hand.

"Zach," said Evelyn, "I'd like you to meet James. After we left Striaton City, his and his wive's, Leslie, Purrloin was stolen by Team Plasma, so Kyle and I helped them! That's where we got Gabite and Axew from!"

"Oh!" gasped James. "The eggs hatched! That's terrific! By the way, where is Kyle today?"

Zach said, "He's competing for his fourth gym badge against Elesa today!"

"So which one of you will be competing in the contest today?" asked James.

"That would be me!" responded Zach.

"I'm going to be competing as well, so I wish you luck, Zach!" exclaimed James, as he ran off to where the contestants were meeting up.

"Thanks!"

* * *

"This battle will be a three-on-three Pokemon battle! On my left, we have the Gym Leader, Elesa, and on my right, we have the challenger, Kyle. Battle... begin!"

"Gabite, I choose you!"

"Emolga, come on out!"

"Emolga, the Sky Squirrel Pokemon. When Emolga stretches out its limbs, the membrane connecing them spreads like a cape and allows it to glide through the air. It makes its abode high in the trees."

Emolga started the battle by using Thunderbolt on Gabite, but Gabite took the hit and didn't take any damade, probably because it was a Ground type, who did not feel the effect of Electric type moves.

Then, Gabite used Dragon Rage on Emolga, blasting it back into the air. Emolga quickly recovered and used Aerial Ace, slicing through the Dragon Rage and hitting Gabite square on!

Gabite then used Dig to hide underground, but Emolga also went underground and used Aerial Ace once more, knocking Gabite out of its shelter. Then, it used Acrobatics whole Gabite was still in the air, knocking it back down.

Gabite went back into the tunnels, and Emolga followed it once again with Aerial Ace. When the two got out of the tunnels, Gabite had Emolga in its jaws, and then, it used Dragon Rage to blast it away.

Emolga fell to the ground and passed out.

"Emolga is uable to battle, which means the winner is Gabite!"

* * *

"Let's get this Musical Festival started!" shouted Jackson, the MC, as the crowd eagerly waited for the event to start.

"First round for today will be the dress-up round," said Jackson. "Since this is the biggest Musical Festival of the year, however, the next round will be randomly chosen for each matchup, varying from Poffin-making to acting or maybe even a Pokemon battle! The last two contestants will have to face off by each making a musical, and if they win, they will get a nice Nimbassa Ribbon and will get their musical showcased tomorrow in front of the one and only ELESA!"

A roar of applause burst through the crowd.

"All right folks, begin!" shouted Jackson to the contestants.

* * *

"Yamask, pass me that ribbon!" shouted Zach as he scrambled to finish up his Pokemons' costumes. Today, he was going to go with the theme of seasons: Purrloin would be winter, Tranquill spring, Dewott summer, and Yamask fall. The costumes were almost finished, but they weren't quite there.

"Almost..." muttered Zach, making his final touches to the costumes.

"Time is up!" shouted the MC. "Now, let's take a good look at those costumes, starting off with James!"

* * *

As Evelyn watched James display his Purrloin, Pansage, and Sewaddle, she felt that her friend had come far from the helpless man who lost his Pokemon at the Day Care center. The Pokemon were dressed as different kinds of flowers, and they all looked beautiful.

When she saw Zach's, however, she was awestruck. His Pokemon were dressed as knights that each seemed like a different season. One Pokmeon had icy-cold armor that shone sapphire, one had a pretty jade-colored one with flowers all over it, one had golden armor with rays of sun coming out of them, and one had a ruby plated armor that held the beauty of nature. That, she believed, was the most stunning thing she'd ever seen!

She saw some other good ones too, including Rebbeca's, the coordinator that seemed to show up in every single contest.

Finally, when the show was over, the MC came onto stage and announced, "The judges have looked upon these magnificent design and chosen some coordinators that truly wowed them. Those 16 coordinators are:

James Jessie Zoey Liam Tory Harley Noah Remi Lily Zach Rebecca Jade Poonya Yuri Lindsay Chloe

* * *

"Those were some good moves, Kyle," said Elesa. "You really stunned me! Now, get ready for even more of a challenge! Joltik, come on out!"

The Pokemon that she sent out looked like a puny little tick. I stifled a laugh.

"Joltik, the Attatching Pokemon. Joltik can't produce their own electricity, so they attatch to larger Pokemon and suck up the static electricity given off. They store this energy in a special pouch."

Gabite, who was a tad bit tired from its tough battle with Emolga, was pumped and ready to continue the battle. Joltik would be a total piece of cake!

Gabite started the battle by using Dig, so it hid underground and waited for the perfect opportunity to come out of the ground. But Joltik decided to use Sticky Web on the battlefield, so when Gabite came out, it would be stuck!

Gabite came out, and it did get stuck! Then, Joltik hopped onto it and use Bug Bite, damaging Gabite! Gabite used Crunch to get away from it and out of the trap, but when it got out, Joltik was nowhere to be seen!

Gabite searched around, but it was gone. Then, from above Gabite's head, a web popped up out of nowhere and tied Gabite up! Joltik leaped down onto the large Pokemon and used Bug Bite once again, and it knocked it out!

"Gabite is unable to battle, which means the victory goes to Joltik!"

How could such a tiny Pokemon be able to do that to Gabite?!

"Good job, Gabite," I said. "That took you by surprise. Return!"

"I told you Joltik wasn't easy to beat," said Elesa. "Who's the next one on execution block?"


	6. Chapter 6

**The SHOCKING Nimbassa City (Part 2)**

The second round was easy for Zach. He was against the trainer Chloe, and he had to bake some Poffins for the judges. While Chloe made a mango batch, he and Purrloin made a rasberry chocolate batch, which awed the judges and moved him on to the next round.

When the second round was over, the MC announced, "Now here are the matchups for the third round!"

1\. James vs. Yuri

2\. Lindsay vs. Poonya

3\. Zach vs. Rebecca

4\. Harley vs. Zoey

* * *

"Ugh!" gasped Becky. "It's that annoying twerp who beat me in the Nacrene contest!"

"Whoa, whoa," calmed Barry. "Your Pokemon are better than his! He just got lucky last time!"

"Yes," said Becky, "but we both have two ribbons! I had to work extra hard to get that ribbon again at the follow-up Nacrene contest, and if he beats me AGAIN, I will..."

"And now," shouted Jackson, the MC, "we have our first battle... James vs. Yuri!"

* * *

"Servine," I shouted, "let's go!"

Servine had to beat Joltik. Yeah, Joltik was a Bug type and Bug beat Grass, but Servine was a strong Pokemon!

Joltik started by using Thunder Shock on Servine, but it dodged. Then, Servine used Vine Whip to grab it, and Joltik used Bug Bite to get Servine's vines off!

Servine then used Leaf Tornado and blew the tiny Pokemon away. It hit the wall and fell down.

Joltik got back up and used Sticky Web on Servine, who couldn't dodge. Joltik leaped onto it and used Thunderbolt, damaging it by a lot! That was when Servine learned a move that helped us win: Slash. It cut through the Sticky Web and gave Servine the opportunity for Servine to use Vine Whip on the shocked Pokemon and slam it to the ground!

"Joltik is unable to battle, which means the victory goes to Servine!"

"I admit," said Elesa. "Your Pokemon do have a lot of talent and beauty! But mine outshine yours by two whole suns! Zebstrika, I choose you!"

Zebstrika came out of its Pokemon. This was it, the final Pokemon for me to beat in order for me to earn my Gym badge.

Servine used Leaf Tornado on Zebstrika to start the battle off, and it hit Zebstrika square on! But Zebstrika reacted quickly and used Thunderbolt on Servine. While it was busy recovering, Zebstrika used Flame Charge and hit Servine with incredible speed, blasting it into the air.

Servine was tired, but it could still fight! It unleashed its Leaf Tornado, while Zebstrika used Flame Charge. The Leaf Tornado, which was destroyed by the flames, slowed down Zebstrika's attack, and that let Servine use Slash on Zebstrika.

The Pokemon reacted quickly by using Spark on the leaping Pokemon, knocking it to the floor and knocking it out.

"Servine is unable to battle, which means the victory goes to Zebstrika!"

* * *

As far as Evelyn could tell, James battled beautifully against Yuri in a battle round. He and Purrloin used a combination of Dark Pulse and Slash to defeat the opponent's Lilipup. They truly did step up from their past selves.

Now, it was Rebecca and Zach's turn, and it was going to be a... dance off!

Rebecca and Zach both called out a Pokemon (Pikachu and Yamask), and they and their Pokemon had to follow the dance that was shown to them.

Zach and Yamask, moving gracefully and perfectly in sync, danced to the beat and enjoyed it thoroughly! Rebecca, however, got shocked by Pikachu's Thunderbolt because she stepped on its ears.

The obvious winner there was Zach!

The next round was easy for both James and Zach, who both had a Pokemon trivia game with their partners, against different opponents. Now was the time for the final round: the musical round.

Both cooridnators spent about an hour rehearsing their musicals. When they were over, the crowd was amazed.

Zach had a Romeo-and-Juliet twist on their play: two families who didn't like each other (family A: Dewott and Tranquill, family B: Yamask and Purrloin), but one Pokemon from each family (Tranquill and Yamask) loved each other and met in secret. But when the two were caught by the others, there was a beautifully coordinated Double battle between the lovers and their family. The lovers lost and were seperated, but promised each other they would love the other forever. Evelyn felt a tear running down her cheek after watching it.

James had a more adventurous theme to it. He had a knight (Sewaddle) who faced an evil prince (Pansage) when he tried to save his beloved maiden (Purrloin). The knight and the prince sparred, and the knight defeated the prince and saved the maiden. This was a happier yet equally enjoyable musical, thought Evelyn.

"Now!" shouted Jackson. "This is the time for you to vote for your favorite performance today. Will it be the heart-breaking tale produced by Zach, or the adventurous quest produced by James? VOTE!"

* * *

"Volcarona," I said, "I choose you!"

Volcarona, for the first time since it came along with me, was battling! It had to win!

Zebstrika used Flame Charge on Volcarona, but Volcarona used Hurricane and blew it back into a wall! It was awesome!

Then, Volcarona used Heat Wave, damaging Zebstrika even more! But Zebstrika was still strong, and it used Thunder on Volcarona, blasting it! Then, it used Flame Charge on the startled Pokemon, blasing it back! After that, it used Thunderbolt and weakened Volcarona even more.

The two Pokemon may not have been in battle against each other two long, but they looked equally tired. They had to use one last move to finish each other off!

Volcarona used Bug Buzz, and Zebstrika used Thunder. Both moves hit at the same time, and a cloud formed around the Pokemon.

Both Pokemon were panting, and they looked like they were about to fall. Volcarona winced, but it still stood strong. Zebstrika would not let down either! He grimaced, but stood still.

Then, one of them fell.

* * *

"All right, the votes are in!" shouted Jackson. "I got to tell you the numbers were awfully close, but we could only have one winner today. Now, here were the percentages of the two contestants:

James: 49%

Zach: 51%

"YAAAAAAY ZACH!" I shouted, as Philip and I both made our way to Evelyn, who was screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Hey, Evelyn," greeted Philip.

Evelyn turned around and finally noticed we were there. "Hey! How were your battles?"

Philip proudly held out his badge. "I got my first badge from Elesa!" he squealed.

"Nice!" said Evelyn, high-fiving him. "How about you, Kyle?"

"I might have to go back there again," I said cooly.

"Aww," said Evelyn. "Did you try your best?"

"WHAT?!" I shouted. "Who said I lost? I beat her, too! I only said that because I still have to watch you battle."

Philip laughed. "You should have seen your face."

"Ha, ha!" grunted Evelyn. "Very funny!"

Philip and I earned our Gym Badges, Zach won his Musical, and now, it was time for Evelyn to win!


	7. Chapter 7

**Enter N!**

"I'm headed off for my Gym Battle with Elesa now!" shouted Evelyn.

"All right!" I responded. "Good luck! Philip and I are going to look to strengthen his team up and add some new Pokemon."

"Cool!" said Zach. "I'll be with Evelyn, watching the battle."

As we left Evelyn and Zach at the gym, Philip and I spotted a Pokemon while walking towards the ferris wheel in the amusement park.

"Mienfoo, the Martial Arts Pokemon. In battle, Mienfoo never stops moving, flowing through one attack after another with grace and speed. Its claws are very sharp."

"Hey, Philip," I said. "I think that Mienfoo is wild! Do you wanna catch it?"

He thought for a second, and then responded, "A fighting type would do me some good, so sure!"

He approached the Pokemon slowly, and said, "Hi, Mienfoo. Do you have a Trainer?"

Mienfoo shook its head. "Mien, mienfoo."

Philip smiled and said, "Would you like to be part of my team?"

Mienfoo jumped into a battle position and nodded.

"So, you wanna battle me, and then join me?" Philip asked.

"Mien, mien," it said as it nodded.

"All right!" he said. "Krokorok, let's go!"

* * *

"Are you ready, Evelyn?" asked Elesa. "'Cause if you are, we could start right away!"

"Sure!" Evelyn said.

The referee stated the rules, but Evelyn could only focus on the battle ahead of her. But then, something got her attention.

"This is going to be a two on two battle?" she asked Elesa.

Elesa nodded. "Yeah. After that long battle against that Trainer Kyle, my Pokemon are tired! Why, is there a problem with that?"

Evelyn shook her head.

"Very well then! Joltik, come on out!" shouted Elesa.

"Axew, I choose you!" yelled Evelyn.

The first battle seemed easy enough, but Kyle had warned her about Joltik's webs that had knocked out Gabite. She had to be extra careful.

Joltik started the battle off by using Bug Bite on Axew, but Axew rolled out of the way quicklu, then followed the attack by using Dual Chop. It hit Joltik, and the Pokemon flew off!

Axew followed up by using Dragon Rage, but Joltik recovered and countered the attack with Electro Ball, pushing the attack back to Axew.

Despite the damage taken, Axew stood up. It ran to Joltik and attempted to use Bite, but Joltik stopped it in its tracks by catching it in a Sticky Web!

Axew was stuck, and Joltik used this as an opportunity by using Bug Bite on Axew, weakening it. Axew tried to free itself by using Dual Chop, and it worked!

Axew fired a Dragon Rage at Joltik, and Joltik fired an Electro Ball at it. A cloud formed around the two Pokemon.

* * *

The battle between Krokorok and Mienfoo started. Mienfoo leaped at Krokorok with a Karate Chop, but Krokorok used Dig and dodged the move.

Mienfoo concentrated on the location where Krokorok would come out, and when Krokorok leaped out of the ground behind it, Mienfoo leaped into the air and used Hi Jump Kick and landed a powerful attack on Krokorok's head.

Krokorok was knocked to the ground, but it still managed to get up. Then, it used Mud Shot on Mienfoo, blinding it. Krokorok followed up by using Crunch on the stunned Mienfoo, sending it flying.

Krokorok jumped into the air and used a move it had newly learned:Assurance. It slapped Mienfoo to the ground, knocking it out.

"All right!" shouted Philip. "PokeBall, go!"

He threw the ball at the unconcious Pokemon, but before it intercepted, a man with green hair knocked it away and said, "You will not imprison this Pokemon, Philip!"

I looked at Philip, who looked terribly shocked. "Philip? What's wrong? Who is that guy?"

"Th-that's N!" he stammered. "N is th-the king of Team Plasma!"

* * *

"Joltik is unable to battle, which means the winner is Axew!"

"Joltik, my dear, return!" shouted Elesa. Then, she turned to Evelyn. "That was incredible battling! You are a tough Trainer! But I'm not sure you can handle this Pokemon! Emolga, let's go!"

Emolga came out of its PokeBall. Axew was ready for it, and rightaway shot at it with Dragon Rage. Emolga spun around the burst and used Aerial Ace on the stunned Axew.

Axew was knocked back, but once again got up. It waited until Emolga used Aerial Ace on it one more time, and right before it attacked, Axew used Dual Chop. Both moves made contact.

Although Emolga was damaged by the move, Axew was about to faint with one more hit! But it perservered and used Dragon Rage once again on the hurt Emolga.

Emolga leaped up, dodged the attack, and used Acrobatics on Axew, knocking it out.

"Axew is unable to battle, which means the winner is Emolga!"

"Axew, good job!" said Evelyn. "Return."

Evelyn thought about a Pokemon that could slow down Emolga and damage it badly. Monferno was quick, but its Mach Punch wouldn't work well against a Flying-type like Emolga. Munna was too slow. Swadloon was slow too, but...

"Swadloon," Evelyn shouted, "let's go!"

Swadloon came out of its PokeBall, ready to fight. Emolga started off the battle that would determine the victor by using Acrobatics on Swadloon. Swadloon tried to dodge, but the move hit.

Emolga once again charged at Swadloon, but this time, Swadloon was ready. It shot out a String Shot and tied Emolga up. Then, it used a combination of Razor Leaf and Bug Bite, damaging it. Emolga couldn't escape!

Swadloon prepared itself for a final Bug Bite, but Emolga cut through the strings that tied it up with Acrobatics, and then used Discharge on Swadloon, sending it flying! While it was in mid-air, Emolga used its final Aerial Ace and knocked Swadloon to the ground.

"SWADLOON!" shouted Evelyn. This looked bad. It could've been over.

"GET UP! You are very strong, I know you can do this!" she continued. "I believe in you!"

Swadloon looked ready to faint, but it stood up. Suddenly, a blue light shone around it. It was evolving due to its strong friendship and bond with Evelyn!

Out of the light came a tall Pokemon that Evelyn was familiar with.

"Leavanny!" Evelyn shouted.

Leavanny was ready to fight and beat Emolga once and for all. Emolga glided towards it to use Aerial Ace, but Leavanny stopped it with Razor Leaf. Then, Leavanny used String Shot to tie Emolga up. This was Evelyn's chance to win this!

Leavanny used Bug Bite on Emolga, and the battle was over.

"Emolga is unable to battle, which means the winner is Leavanny, and the victor is the challenger, Evelyn!"

Evelyn went to praise Leavanny, who ran to its Trainer and hugged her. Then, Elesa approached them and said, "That was some glistening battling! You two shone like stars. Here, take this badge!"

As she handed the badge to Evelyn, she turned to Zach and said, "You better get ready to present that Musical to me today, by the way! You did win that ribbon, right?"

Zach looked stunned. Evelyn laughed. He had forgotten!

* * *

"So you're the one behind that evil organization!" I shouted. "You should be ashamed of yourself, covering your evil actions up by saying you're liberating Pokemon! We all know that you're not!"

N looked stunned. "I don't know what you are talking about, but we DO liberate Pokemon to get them away from harmful Trainers like the bunch of you."

Philip looked to his former leader and said, "N, you are blinded! Ghetsis and the other Sages are manipulating everything! They torture Pokemon and call it an 'experiment'."

N shrugged. "Even if that were true, I would NEVER tolerate that kind of action!"

Then, he looked at me. "You, Trainer. You think your Pokemon are just appliances?"

I snapped, "NO! They are my partners and friends!"

He looked at me blankly, "Then send out one of your Pokemon and let them talk to me."

"TALK to you?!" I shouted. "You can do that, too?"

Suddenly, N was interested. "You possess the ability, too?"

"Yes," I responded. "Although, it only happened once, when Servine and I were battling against a mysterious Trainer. Servine shone green and it... turned into me, kind of. It sort of looked like me. I knew what it was thinking, and it could talk to me! I didn't even have to say anything to give it commands!"

N smiled. "I want to have a battle with this Servine of yours. Just to see the bond you share."

"Deal!" I responded. "Servine, come out!"

"Ok," N said, "Liepard, I choose you!"

Liepard came out of its PokeBall.

Liepard started the battle off by using Dark Pulse. It blew Servine into the air. Then, it smacked it down with Assurance.

Liepard carried out its attacks by using Fury Swipes repeatedly. Servine was getting hurt!

Servine landed on the ground in front of me. 'Servine,' I thought. 'We can do this together! Merge with me and become one with me!'

Suddenly, a green light shone around Servine, until its skin turned blue and it had the same brown eyes as I did. I could hear it think!

Servine got up and looked at me.

"Let's do this!" it said.

I thought, 'Leaf Tornado?'

I nodded.

Servine spawned a Leaf Tornado that was as big as an actual hurricane and blasted it towrads Liepard.

A cloud of dust exploded. Liepard fainted.

As Evelyn watched Zach's Romeo and Juliet musical once more, she cried. It really was a heart-breaking and beautiful play!

When it was over, Zach and his Pokemon bowed on stage. The whole audience applaused and even threw roses!

Elesa stood to greet Zach on stage. "That," she said, "was an awe-striking mix of talent and beauty! Your Pokemon glistened like a sun to me, and I couldn't have enjoyed it even more!"

* * *

"So it is true," said N. "You do possess those abilities?"

Philip said, "And he could do a whole lot more!"

N turned to Philip and said, "You know what, if you are going to be around a person like Kyle, hopefully you could be influenced to treat your Pokemon like they were actual people. Here, take another go at catching this Mienfoo!"

Philip looked at N, then looked at Mienfoo. He threw a PokeBall, and Mienfoo went inside.

"Alright," said Philip. "I got myself... a Mienfoo!"

N turned to me. "I would very much like to see your abilities grow. Hopefully, we could meet again sometime, and we could have a battle of unknown strengths!"

I nodded. "Sounds good. For me, N, please try to put a stop to your organization's hurting of Pokemon. Even if you don't believe me..."

He nodded. "I understand."

Then, he left.

* * *

We met up with Evelyn and Zach and shared with each other about our day. We all laughed and were surprised, but now, we realized, was time for Philip to got back to Nuvema Town .

As we went to the airport, we all hugged Philip. I said, "Good luck to you!"

He laughed. "I could say the same for you, too!"

"Don't go back to evil while we're not around!" joked Evelyn.

"I'll try!" Philip responded.

Zach then asked, "We will be seeing you in Driftiveil City, right?"

He nodded. "With Professor Juniper's help, Nuvema to Driftiveil will take as long for you guys to reach Driftiveil! Plus, Mienfoo and Krokorok are stronger than the Pokemon that are in that area, so I'm good."

We all laughed and said our goodbies as Philip got onto his plane.

Driftiveil City, here we come!


	8. Chapter 8

**A Heated Competition!**

As we continued our journey to Driftiveil City, Zach, Evelyn, and I noticed a crowd of people up ahead, right in front of the Driftiveil Drawbridge.

"What do you think is going on?" asked Evelyn, as she headed towards the group.

"Looks like something big!" I exclaimed.

As we made out way through the group, I saw what everyone else had come to watch.

It was a battle between the Unova Champion Alder and another Trainer!

Then, Evelyn gasped as she saw the other Trainer.

"Evelyn," I asked. "Do you know who that is?"

She nodded. "That's Cynthia!"

Zach looked at her, surprised. "You know her?"

Evelyn responded, "Of course I do! She's the champion of Sinnoh!"

"WHAA?!" I exclaimed.

Evelyn then said, "She's also my big sister!"

* * *

After I had time to process the fact that Evelyn was related to the Sinnoh region champion, I decided to watch the battle to cool myself down.

Alder sent out a buffalo Pokemon, who looked really big and strong.

"Bouffalant, the Bash Buffalo Pokemon. Though Bouffalant can knock a train off the rails wih the force of its headbutt, it doesn't worry about hurting itself, because its fluffy fuy absorbs he impact."

Cynthia sent out a Pokemon that looked a lot like Gabite. It must have been its evolution!

"Garchomp, the Mach Pokemon, and the evolved form of Gabite. Garchomp can fly faster than the speed of sound. When it assumes a streamlined position for flight, it looks like a flighter jet."

The battle between the champions was off! Garchomp leaped towards Bouffalant with incredible speed and used Dual Chop. Bouffalant intercepted it with the fur on its head, and then used Megahorn to blast it off! Garchomp was knocked into the air, but it retaliated by aiming straight for the ground and using Dig.

Bouffalant, not knowing where its opponent would come out from, started stampeding around. This would make it harder for Garchomp to hit it exactly!

Garchomp managed to leap up from behind Bouffalant, and then sped towards it with Dual Chop. Bouffalant stopped in its tracks and intercepted the move with Headbutt. The power was equal.

But now that it had Bouffalant in its claws, Garchomp used Dragon Rage and blasted its opponent back.

Bouffalant, after having been blasted back a few feet, reacted to that with Hyper Beam, which Garchomp swirled around and dodged. That Pokemon was fast!

Bouffalant was prepared for this and used Head Charge to send it back flying. Although Garchomp had incredible speed. Bouffalant was incredibly strong. This was an even match.

Garchomp glided towards Bouffalant using Dragon Rush at a practically impossible speed, and Bouffalant charged at it with an incredibly powerful Giga Impact! The two collided and stood in place for a few secinds.

Then, Garchomp fell.

"And that...is how its done!" shouted Alder.

* * *

After the battle was over, we went with Evelyn to go find Cynthia. Finally, she was spotted eating a Castelia Cone by the drawbridge.

"Hey, sis!" shouted Evelyn, running to her big sister.

"Evy!" exclaimed Cynthia.

The two hugged for a whole minute, taking each other's presence in. Finally, Evelyn said, "That was an incredible battle you had against Alder! Garchomp is looking good!"

She laughed. "Thanks, but I'm kind of disappointed I lost! He's my rival, and although I win sometimes, I also lose!"

Evelyn said, "No matter! I got someone to show you!"

She let Monferno out of its PokeBall.

"That mischevious Chimchar of your's evolved!" gasped Cynthia, as the Pokemon hugged her.

Then, she turned to me and Zach. "Who are your friends?"

Evelyn said, "Cynthia, I'd like you to meet Kyle and Zach!"

We shook hands.

"So," Cynthia said, "you two have been accompanying my sister throughout her journies in Unova?"

Zach nodded. "Yep! Ever since Nuvema Town!"

"I see," she responded. "What are your ambitions, boys? What made you want to go on this journey?"

Zach said, "I want to be a Pokemon Musical Master Performer! So far, I have 3 ribbons!"

Cynthia then said, "I know somebody who was into coordination of Pokemon, like you are. Now, she's a model in the Sinnoh region!"

Evelyn nodded. "Dawn is the absolute best! I watched her in the Grand Festival, where she got runner up after losing by a smidge to her rival, Zoey!"

Cynthia then asked me, "What is your goal here in the Unova region?"

I looked at her and said, "I want to be a Pokemon World Class Champion! I don't want to just be the best, I want to be friends with Pokemon all over the world and share their strength!"

Cynthia laughed. "You sound like someone I once knew!"

Suddenly, Alder came up to Cynthia. "You can't win them all, Cynthia!"

Cynthia rolled her eyes. "I could say the same to you! And don't get too cocky, because the next time around, Garchomp will pulverize Bouffalant!"

Alder smirked. "I'm sure!"

I then said, "Alder, sir, I am a HUGE fan of yours! That battle was AWESOME!"

He laughed. "Thanks, kid! And what's your name?"

"Kyle," I said.

He gasped, and then laughed. "So YOU'RE the Trainer Elesa was telling me about! She says you were one tough cookie! I hope I get to battle you when you are stronger!"

Then he turned to Evelyn. "That must mean that you are Evelyn! Elesa was saying a lot of good stuff about you, too! I hope I battle you as well!"

Then, two Trainers came up to Alder. "Alder, will you battle us?"

Alder looked at them and said, "Why, if it isn't Hilbert and Hilda? A battle? Not now."

"Come on!" Hilbert groaned. "I wanna toughen up so I can beat Elesa!"

"Fine then," said Alder. "Battle these two Trainers here: Evelyn and Kyle."

The two Trainers walked up to us. "Will you two battle us?"

"Yep!" Evelyn said. "Kyle, are yu ready!"

"Let's go!" I exclaimed.

We started our double battle. I sent out Servine and Evelyn sent out Monferno. Hilda used a Dewott and Hilbert used a Pignite.

Pignite used Flame Charge and hurdled towards Servine, but Servine leaped in the air and dodged it. Then, it glided towards its enemy and used Slash, knocking it back.

Meanwhile, Monferno used Mach Punch on Dewott, but Dewott countered with Razor Shell. Dewott then blasted Monferno in the face with Water Gun. It was super effective!

Servine went to cover for Monferno while it stood up and used Vine Whip on Dewott, but Dewott used its scalchops to parry the move. Dewott then came at Servine by using Aqua Jet, and from behind, Pignite used Take Down. Servine was cornered!

But it wouldn't give up! Servine used Leaf Tornado on itself and blasted itself into the air, dodging the attacks! Pignite and Dewott hit each other head on, causing a lot of damage. Monferno used this as an opportunity to use Flame Wheel and knock the opponents back.

After having been blasted into the air by Flame Wheel, Pignite used Flame Charge and sped towards Monferno, hitting it square on! Monferno was pushed back, but it retaliated by using a series of Mach Punches. Pignite countered by using a seriesof Arm Thrusts!

While those two were dueling, Dewott, while in midair, shot a Water Pulse straight at Servine, and Servine countered using Leaf Tornado. The moves were both blasted straight into Dewott, knocking it to the ground.

Dewott stood up, and it suddenly had a blue aura. It was its ability, Torrent! Now, all of Dewott's Water-type moves were strengthened. Dewott hurdled towards Servine using Aqua Jet, blasting it into the air, and then it used Razor Shell to damage it even further.

Meanwhile, Monferno and Pignite were parrying each others attacks, and Monferno blasted Pignite with Flamethrower, distracting it. Then, it used Flame Wheel to knock it straight into Dewott, who had just finished attacking Servine.

Both of the opponents' Pokemon stood up, and our Pokemon used a Flamethrower/Leaf Tornado combo attack and hurdled it straight towards the opponents' Pokemon!

"Dewott is unable to battle!" shouted Alder. "Now, it is Servine and Monferno vs. Pig..."

Suddenly, Pignite started to emanate a blue light. It stood up, and suddenly grew to a massive size. When the light disappeared, a massive, bulky Pokemon stood in front of us.

"ALL RIGHT!" shouted Hilbert. "All that training with Pignite payed off!"

"Emboar, the Mega Fire Pig Pokemon, and the evolved form of Pigite. With the fiery beard that covers its chin, Emboar can set its fists ablaze and throw flaming punches. Its battle moves are speedy and powerful."

Uh-oh. Not only were our Pokemon tired, but now, we had to deal with an Emboar!

Servine used Leaf Tornado, which Emboar disintegrated with Fire Punch. Servine then used Wrap, and it worked! But then, Emboar leaped into the air, slammed Servine off of it and onto the ground, and used Heat Crash on it and finished it off!

"Servine is unable to battle, which means that this battle is betwen Emboar and Monferno!"

"Nice try, Servine," I said as I called back my Pokemon. "You were incredible!"

As I walked towards the crowd to watch from there, Cynthia approached me. "That was an incredible battle! Your Servine was fast AND very strong! It is ok that it lost to Emboar because now, you are even more determined to beat it, and next time you see Hilbert or even Hilda, you'll be stronger for them!"

I nodded. "Thanks, Cynthia!"

She laughed. "No problem! Now, let's watch my little sis!"

It was up to Evelyn. She had to beat Hilbert for us to officially win this battle.

Emboar used Take Down and crashed into Monferno, sending it flying. Monferno got up and retaliated using Flame Wheel. Emboar dodge it by jumping in the air, and then it landed on top of Monerno with Heat Crash!

Monferno used Dig to hide underground, but Emboar used Heat Crash once again on the ground and caused an earthquake and sent Monferno flying out of its tunnels underground. Emboar leaped into the air and used Fire Punch, knocking Monferno onto the ground.

"Monferno is unable to battle, whoch means the winner is..."

Suddenly, Monferno got up and started to glow red. Its ability Blaze kicked in! It leaped towards Emboar with newfound speed using Flame Wheel, knocking it back!

Thn, it used a move it just learned, Close Combat, and knocked Emboar to the ground. Emboar stood up and was still able to battle, but, like Monferno, one more hit would end it and cause us to win this battle.

Monferno leaped at it with Mach Punch, and Emboar used Fire Punch. This move would decide the winner.

The two were knocked back by the strength of each others' moves. They stood, panting.

I looked to Evelyn, who was confident. Then, I looked to Hilbert and Hilda, who would not let us win.

Then, I noticed Emboar cringe. Monferno had hit it in its legs!

But then, I noticed Monferno wince. It was hit in the leg as well! Both of their balances were off!

Both fell.

"Get up! Emboar, you are strong!" shouted Hilbert.

"Monferno, I believe in you! Stand up!"

Both Pokemon struggled to stand up...

And then Monferno fell.

"Monferno is unable to battle, which means the victors of this battle are Hilbert and Hilda!"

The two Trainers cheered. They had absolutely no reason not to. They had an incredible battle against us!

But stll, I couldn't help but wonder if we would've won if Pignite hadn't evolved into Emboar.

As I shook Hilbert's hand, he said, "You and your Servine were incredible! I was so sure you would have beat me if it wasn't for Pignite's evolution!"

I nodded. "Well, next time we meet, I'll win it for sure!"

Hilbert laughed. "Well then, watch out!"

Alder and Cynthia approached us.

"Nice job, sis!" said Cynthia. "You were super close! Monferno really put up a fight in the end!"

She said,"Thanks!"

Alder pulled me aside and said, "Kyle, here's the thing. Although Monferno lasted longer, your Servine took more hits, and it would've made it through the battle if it was quicker! Servine has more potential than Dewott and maybe even Emboar! It just has to be able to dodge moves faster. Understand?"

I nodded.

"You have the potential to beat me someday with that Servine of yours, so I hope you take the challenge soon!"

I exclaimed, "I sure will! I'll see you at the Pokemon League!"

He laughed. "Can't wait!"

I met the champions of both the Sinnoh AND Unova regions, lost a really close battle to two other Trainers, and made new rivals. Now, I had to get my fifth gym badge in Driftiveil City!


End file.
